


Shadow of the Day

by treya_barton



Series: Tainted Love [3]
Category: Persona 4
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Gen, M/M, Vampire Hunters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:53:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26605540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/treya_barton/pseuds/treya_barton
Summary: Kanji chases down a kid that he's seen wandering around his beat at night in an attempt to find out why he's been out late without any parental supervision.  In the process he learns something that incenses him and starts him on a mission to improve the vampire community.
Relationships: Hanamura Yosuke/Narukami Yu, Hanamura Yosuke/Persona 4 Protagonist, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji
Series: Tainted Love [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1895857
Comments: 6
Kudos: 29





	Shadow of the Day

Kanji sprinted down the street, ignoring the startled looks he received and the way people naturally moved out of his way, nervously eyeing his towering size, natural scowl, and overall rough appearance. He had a scar on his face, ripped jeans, bleached hair, and a well-worn zip up hoodie casually left open to showcase his band tank top, which didn’t really fit in with the business men with their suit and ties and the more trendily dressed that frequented this part of town. If he was in the district with more of the streetwear and live venues that showcased local rock groups he may fit in a little better.

Kanji’s breath puffed in the chill air and he kept his eyes on his target, a surprisingly fast kid that he had seen wandering around his beat for the past few nights without any adult supervision. There had never been a kid that could outrun him before; he may not be as fast as Yosuke, but with his long legs he could still outrun most everyone he chased after with the exception of actual vampires. Kanji’s lungs were straining, and he could feel his legs burning at the effort, but he was determined to catch this kid this time and figure out where his family was; he also wanted to give his parents a stern talking to letting him wander about like that.

Unfortunately, just like the prior nights, the kid suddenly turned a corner and disappeared and Kanji finally had to give up, doubling over and panting as he tried to catch his breath. The crowd around him still gave him a wide berth, but Kanji was used to it by now and ignored it. It had bothered him in his youth, and he had been admittedly a bit of a punk who caused his ma the occasional headache, but in his current line of work it was usually to his advantage; he never had to weave through the crowd like his sempai usually did.

“If you keep that approach up, you’re never going to catch him,” a voice called from the shadows.

Kanji lifted his head and watched as a woman with sharp features and an intense gaze walked up to him, almost appearing to melt into existence from the shadows. Ozawa Yumi was one of his vampire confidants that he usually reached out to in the area. She usually went to late night poetry reading sessions at the local cafés, since it gave her a chance to showcase her acting talents. Kanji had looked her up once – apparently, she had been set to become a stage performer shortly before disappearing, and was thought to be dead. The poetry readings allowed her to cling to that past without anyone looking too closely into her background.

“What d’you mean?” Kanji asked. Yumi never minded his gruff voice or direct way of speaking; she seemed to appreciate it.

“That boy is a vampire,” she explained as it if were the most obvious thing in the world. “You’ll never be able to outrun him.”

Kanji’s mouth dropped open. “Wait, you’re tellin’ me some bastard turned a kid?” he asked, anger spiking at the very idea.

Yumi let out a sigh. “Even amongst vampires, it’s something pretty taboo,” she explained. “However, there can be various reasons for it.” She counted off, using her fingers. “Sometimes the kid is sick and would die otherwise, sometimes a vampire was on a feeding frenzy and does it out of a moment of remorse. Sometimes they’re just sick and get some awful sort of satisfaction out of it.” She dropped her hand. “Either way, whether ill intentioned or not, it usually doesn’t go well for the kid.”

“Why’s that?” Kanji asked.

“Well, most of them don’t last until the next day because they are naturally drawn toward the sunlight and very quickly meet their end,” she explained. “Those that do have the natural instinct to survive usually go feral and are disposed of quickly so they’re not a threat to society. Because they’re so taboo, most vampires don’t want to keep them around out of fear of judgment of being the one who turned the child.”

“That’s bullshit,” Kanji said angrily. “If you’re not going to take care of ‘em, why turn ‘em?”

Yumi shrugged. “I can give you a little tidbit of information. I’ve seen something in the news about a missing kid – looks just like him. His name is Minami Yuuta.” The name did ring a bell, Kanji thought he had seen it on the news himself.

“Thanks, I’ll find a way to help the kid,” Kanji said, suddenly feeling resolute. Yumi gave him a wave before melting back into the shadows, no doubt on her way to a café, and Kanji returned to the precinct to try to dig up what he could about the kid.

The next night, after asking around to a few contacts, he ended up going to a playground near the boy’s home. They had mentioned seeing a freshly turned child vampire there, although none of them seemed particularly comfortable with the subject. Kanji came prepared with a toy he had crocheted himself, shaping it like a chibi Mobile Suit since the kid had been listed as carrying around a Gundam toy, and mentally prepared himself to show the patience he only seemed to have for kids and seniors.

Sure enough, he saw the kid swinging by himself on a swing, clutching his stomach with one hand and baring his teeth. ‘This kid probably hasn’t fed yet – he’s got to be starving,’ Kanji thought. He seemed to not be too far gone yet if he hadn’t fallen into a bloodlust frenzy; it’s probably why the other vampires had left him alone so far.

“Hey ki…I’mean, Yuuta-kun,” Kanji called, startling the boy who jumped off the swing and turned to look at him. He seemed to recognize Kanji and looked about ready to run off again. “’M not here t’hurt you,” Kanji said, crouching down so he didn’t appear so scary. He brought out his badge, showing it to Yuuta before also pulling out the Mobile Suit plush. “You like Gundam right?” he asked.

The kid nodded, staring at Kanji’s badge. “Are you…a police officer?” he hesitantly asked and Kanji nodded.

“’M Detective Tatsumi,” he introduced. “’Ve been trying to catch y‘cuz a kid like you shouldn’t be wanderin’ on your own.” Yuuta looked nervous, but he took a few hesitant steps forward.

“I feel funny,” he said, and Kanji could tell from the slightly feverish look in his eye that he was probably close to bloodlust.

“You’re probably hungry,” Kanji explained. “I can help with that.”

Yuuta shook his head, suddenly looking scared. He took a step back. “No…” he mumbled, before crouching down and shivering.

Kanji’s brows furrowed, and he suddenly wondered what had happened to the boy. “Y’know your parents are lookin’ for you, right?”

Yuuta shook his head. “They don’t care about me… My dad only cares about work and…” he trailed off. Kanji knew that his dad had remarried and figured it was a little complicated. “Besides I…” he hesitated, holding back a sob. “They’re not…safe. Around me.” He sniffled.

‘The kid’s pretty smart,’ Kanji realized. “S’ok. You don’t have to go back home,” he said. “But I can promise you’ll be safe w’me.”

He held out the plush and patiently waited. Yuuta looked up at him and shook his head. “I’m so hungry,” he said, tears starting to fall.

“I’ll get you somethin’ to eat, it’s ok,” Kanji encouraged him. When Yuuta didn’t budge, he explained, “’M a special kind of officer and know what you are, Yuuta-kun.”

“You do?” Yuuta asked, and Kanji nodded. Yuuta finally drew closer, before reaching out and clutching the doll to his chest for comfort. Kanji patted him on the head while he tried to dry his tears and looked up at Kanji hopefully. Kanji pulled out a knife and carefully cut his arm, ensuring it was in a way that would be able to heal easily, before offering it to Yuuta.

“Here, let’s get you somethin’ t’eat,” he said.

Yuuta stared at his arm as if hypnotized, yet somehow still seemed to have enough presence of mind to hold back. “It’s ok?” he asked.

“Only when offered like this. There’re other ways too – we’ll get you set up at the precinct, ok?” Kanji replied.

Yuuta nodded before reaching forward, hungrily licking away at the blood as it dripped from Kanji’s arm, sating his hunger enough before Kanji could get him set up with some blood tablets. Kanji then picked him up on his shoulders, causing Yuuta to laugh in excitement due to how tall he was, before rolling back down the sleeve to his hoodie to hide his cut and standing the rest of the way up.

“Ready t’see the precinct?” he asked, and Yuuta nodded excitedly. He was a bit chattier on their way there, and Kanji couldn’t help but feel relieved that the kid seemed much more cheerful than he had earlier. 

Once they reached the building, Kanji headed inside, hoping that his sempai would be in and able to provide some guidance on what to do. He wondered if they had heard of child vampires before. Kanji found out that Yuuta had been hiding in the attic at his school during the day, realizing after a sunbeam had hit his arm from a window that the sunlight hurt. He had been attacked on his way home from daycare right after sundown when his stepmother hadn’t come to pick him up and he had insisted on going home on his own; he knew she would have been home and didn’t want to bother his father who was still at work. He had been close to his school and hidden inside, fortunately finding a way to crawl into the attic since the stairs had been left down, figuring no one would be able to find him there. He had heard vampire stories before at his daycare from another student whose parents let them watch horror movies, so he had been able to piece together what had happened to him. He had been scared over the idea of hurting someone else and hadn’t known what to do.

Kanji was glad he had found him when he did. The fact his stepmom had put him in the situation in the first place pissed him off, but she did seem genuinely upset that he was missing even if it was out of guilt more than anything else. He came up to the office that Chie and Yosuke shared and stepped inside, feeling relieved when he saw Yosuke inside; he looked like he was in the middle of doing research for a case. More than likely Chie was out training some new recruits. Kanji knocked on the open door to get Yosuke’s attention who quickly looked up. “Oh, hey,” he asked, before noticing Yuuta. “Who’s the kid?”

“This is Minami Yuuta,” Kanji explained. Yosuke’s brows furrowed together, as he obviously tried to place where he had heard the name before. Then his eyes widened. 

“You found the missing kid?” he asked. Yuuta was shyly hiding behind Kanji’s leg, who had let him down once they reached the precinct. He was staring at Yosuke, obviously unsure of their new companion even if he was also a detective. “Shouldn’t you be bringing him to missing persons?”

“He’s…not just a missin’ kid,” Kanji replied, running his hand through his short, bleached hair. Yuuta continued to stare at Yosuke who glanced back at him, eyes curious until realization hit. He froze.

“Oh,” he said. Yuuta clutched his toy to his chest and used one hand to grab hold of Kanji’s jacket. Anger briefly formed in Yosuke’s eyes before he let out a deep sigh and flashed Yuuta a smile. “Kanji make that for you?” he asked. Yuuta nodded. Yosuke reached in his bag, pulling out a pack of blood tablets. Since dating Yu, he kept some on him just in case. Occasionally his boyfriend was surprisingly airheaded and would leave home without them.

“What would you like to drink?” Yosuke asked, kneeling down so he could look Yuuta in the eye. Yuuta glanced at Kanji who nodded encouragingly.

“Is there any strawberry milk?” he asked. 

Yosuke hummed. “There should be,” he said. The vending machine was kept well stocked with a variety of drinks. While most was coffee/energy drinks, there were a few people at the precinct with a sweet tooth. “If they don’t have it, I’ll get you a soda. That ok?”

Yuuta nodded, and Yosuke headed out of the room. While he was out, Kanji scrounged around for the first aid kit he knew his sempai kept in their office so he could clean and bandage his cut. Once Yosuke returned, he kneeled before Yuuta again. The boy was sitting in Chie’s chair while playing with the Mobile Suit toy on her desk. “Do you see this?” Yosuke asked, holding up the pack of pills. Yuuta looked at it before giving a solemn nod.

“These are called blood tablets. You pop them in your drink and they’ll feed you just like if you were drinking blood,” he explained. “Let me show you.” He dropped the tablet in the strawberry milk, shaking it a little to help it dissolve, before handing it to Yuuta. The boy took a sip, before a smile spread across his face.

“This tastes good!” he said. “Much better than the food I tried…”

“We’ll make sure you keep some on you so you don’t go hungry, ok?” Yosuke asked, and Yuuta nodded happily. Yosuke ruffled his hair, before pulling Kanji aside to talk. They stepped into the hall and closed the door.

“If I knew who did this to him…I would put a stake through them myself,” Yosuke hissed through grit teeth.

“What d’we do, sempai?” Kanji asked. “I hadn’t heard of anythin’ like this before…”

Yosuke let out a sigh. “I’d never seen a kid who hadn’t gone feral before. I’ve…had to dispatch of a few myself. It’s never pleasant,” he grimaced. His eyes turned thoughtful. “I wonder if Yu could help.”

He pulled out his phone to call his boyfriend, and Kanji stepped back inside to check on Yuuta. The boy was staring down at his toy, a pensive expression on his face.

“What’s going to happen to me, Detective Tatsumi?” he asked.

“Well, we’re goin’ t’find someone who can take care of you,” Kanji explained. “Someone of your kind who can show y’what to do.” He at least hoped so – he remembered what Yumi had said and how reluctant his contacts had been to help. He figured Yu would be more helpful at least – from what he could tell from meeting him a few times he seemed like a nice guy.

Yuuta looked down, biting his lip while clutching the toy more closely. Kanji quickly knelt back down next to him. “And I’ll also visit, does that sound ok?” he asked.

Yuuta looked at him over his Gundam, before slowly nodding his head. Kanji gave him an encouraging grin. Yosuke popped his head back in. “Hey Yuuta, want to meet someone cool?” he asked.

Yuuta seemed to like Yosuke more after the strawberry milk. “Someone cool?” he asked, looking a little excited at the idea, and Yosuke nodded. He locked the screen of his computer before throwing on his jacket.

“Y’ok to leave in the middle of work?” Kanji asked.

“Consider it a lunch break,” Yosuke shrugged. “The museum’s not too far from here so Yu’s coming to pick us up.”

He reached down and offered his hand to Yuuta, who accepted it before hopping out of his chair, tossing his finished milk in the wastebasket before heading with Yosuke out the door. By the time the three of them stepped outside, Yu’s sleek, silver car was parked out front and waiting for them. Yuuta looked impressed by the car, and ran up to it in excitement once he realized that was their intended destination. Yu rolled down the window, glancing down at the boy, his eyes showing a glimmer of sadness before he masked it with a smile. “You must be Yuuta-kun,” he said.

“Are you cool?” Yuuta asked, and Yu let out a chuckle.

“I will let you decide that,” he said, a twinkle in his eye. He and Yosuke exchanged a quick kiss as a greeting before Yosuke climbed into the passenger seat and Kanji and Yuuta climbed into the back. “You’re going to stay at my place for a few days, is that ok?” he asked, glancing back at Yuuta. Yuuta stared at him for several moments, as if trying to figure him out. His eyes suddenly widened.

“You’re like me,” he realized, and Yu let out a nod.

“I am. I’m going to take good care of you and teach you all you need to know. Does that sound ok?” he asked.

Yuuta nodded, relief on his face. “You are a cool guy,” he affirmed, and Yu grinned before glancing at Yosuke who looked away with a blush on his face.

Once Yuuta had settled in at Yu’s place, Yu getting him set up with some movies to watch while he was at work and promising to be back before sunrise, he drove Yosuke and Kanji back to the precinct. On their way, they discussed their predicament. “It’s very rare for a kid like him not go to feral,” Yu explained. “Yuuta-kun is a strong boy. Anytime I’ve seen a child vampire not go feral, they’re basically kept as pets for the one who turned him.” His voice turned icy, and Kanji and Yosuke grit their teeth.

“So, there’s nowhere that could take ‘im in?” Kanji asked.

“I’ll reach out to Rise – she has a lot of trustworthy contacts and I’m sure one of them can take him in for the long term. Until then, I have no problem taking care of Yuuta-kun,” Yu replied.

“So, when you guys…turn for the first time. How d’you know what to do?” Kanji questioned.

“Well, you don’t. Some people have strong enough instincts to figure it out, but usually you run into someone who helps you out or the one that turns you sticks around,” Yu replied. “If not then you turn feral and are swiftly dispatched.”

His eyes stared out at the road, and Yosuke was looking at him thoughtfully. He reached out to place a hand over the one Yu wasn’t using to drive and he gave it a squeeze. The silver haired vampire turned to look at Yosuke and gave him a small smile of thanks. “You’d think there’d be a place you could go,” Kanji said, brows furrowed. “Y’know, that would make our lives easier too. Less feral vampires to deal with. If w’can help them before they get to that point…” he trailed off.

Yu glanced at him from the rearview mirror. “I think you’re onto something, Tatsumi-san,” he said. He was mulling over the idea in his head. “For the most part, vampire society is pretty scattered. Some people form small covens, but for the most part people stick to themselves. Having something available as a support system… I’ll run the idea by Rise, see what she thinks.”

“Wait, really?” Kanji asked. He looked excited at the idea. Yu nodded, and Kanji let out a grin. “Hell yeah! Count me in! Maybe it can be a joint effort between the vampire hunters and vampires. Like community outreach?”

“Wow Kanji, this is a pretty cool idea,” Yosuke said. “I think it would be great for the department too. May help curb some of the tendencies from the more extreme among us if they have to work more closely with vampires too.”

“You’ll help out too, sempai?” Kanji asked.

“Of course I will, count me in!”

Yu ended up reaching out to Rise as promised, and she was able to find a more permanent home for Yuuta with one of her friends who had always wanted to have children but had been changed before she had the opportunity to. Rise also loved the idea of a community program for newly turned vampires that would help them learn what to do as they navigated being a fledgling or needed to learn how to deal with the modern age if they had woken up from a long hibernation. There were also “daycare” and “homeschool options” set up for the few children like Yuuta or the teens that had been changed as well. The group doubled as a regular community center for humans too, offering classes for adults to get back on their feet and childcare for normal kids so it would be easier to hide the vampire children. The charity was a boost to Rise’s image, along with the other vampires she got to chip in for it, and also worked as a community service outreach for the precinct as well. 

Kanji spent a lot of time there on his days off, doing arts and crafts with the children and checking in on Yuuta who went there to continue studying and going to the daycare so he could play with other children. While Yuuta sometimes seemed sad that he won’t be able to play outside anymore and would occasionally seem homesick, he had seemed to grow used to his lifestyle overall and was surprisingly cheerful. Kanji could tell it was his true personality shining through.

True to his word, both Yosuke and Chie would occasionally volunteer as well. Chie would do martial arts or sports with the kids, letting them run around in the yard once the sun went down, while Yosuke had a few kids and adults he was giving guitar lessons to, taking the time to pull out his hobby and finally using out the guitar that had sat untouched for the past few years. Yu often stopped by as well, either with Yosuke or Rise, and he got along well with the kids and teens who all seemed to like him a lot and would often confide in him. Rise, meanwhile, always put on a show when she visited, literally, by setting up performances for the kids or bringing clothes for dress up that they could use as their own runway show.

The best part was, as it became normal for some of the officers to volunteer at the community outreach center, they could see a few of their fellow hunters slowly change their minds as they saw that vampires were normal people like them. There were some that stubbornly held onto their beliefs, but every detective that changed their mind was a victory in Kanji’s book. One day after a day of volunteering, Chie, Yosuke, and Kanji were hanging out at a bar, shortly before closing. It was their day off, so they were sharing a beer to celebrate the success of the center. “You did good, Kanji-kun,” Chie praised, giving her kohai a grin.

Kanji looked shy at the praise. “’t’was nothin’,” he said bashfully, and Yosuke rolled his eyes.

“It was more than nothing and you know it. Yuuta-kun seems to be doing really well,” he added, and Kanji nodded, a small smile on his face.

“Yeah, he really does,” he said. “I just can’t believe no one had thought of it before?”

“Well, now that we have something here, hopefully we can get it to grow into other areas as well,” Yosuke mused. “I think Rise’s excited at the idea of having something good to spend her money on.”

“Yeah, she’s pretty amazing,” Chie said. It was something else seeing someone so high profile popping in at the community center; it had added to its visibility. They clinked their beers together and took a sip, looking forward to continued developments with Kanji’s project and growing the positive impact on the vampire community.


End file.
